Museum objects, artifacts, and archival items from the Sarmaya collection.
This shadow puppet of Lord Brahma is from Tholu Bommalaata, puppet tradition of Andhra Pradesh in India. Here, tholu means leather, bommalu means puppets and aata means dance. Brahma is one of the Holy Trinity in the Hindu Pantheon. Here he is depicted with three visible heads and four arms holding the scriptures in one hand. He also wears a yellow… Read more »
This shadow puppet of Matsya Vallabha is from Tholu Bommalaata, puppet tradition of Andhra Pradesh in India. Here, tholu means leather, bommalu means puppets and aata means dance. Matsya Vallabha in Valmiki’s Ramayana is the son of Hanuman. When Hanuman was flying across the sea after burning Lanka with his tail, a drop of sweat fell into the water which was… Read more »
This work illustrates the entire process of making the Mata ni Pachedi and the city of Ahmedabad by young artist Sumit Chitara (b.2004), son of National award winner Sanjay Chitara (b.1978). Mata-ni-pachedi is an artistic tradition practised by the Vaghris of Gujarat. It was a drought that brought the community to Khanpur in Ahmedabad… Read more »
This Madhubani painting is thematically religious. It showcases the dasavatars or ten incarnations of the Lord Vishnu. The incarnations are divided in small rectangles in two rows, making it a miniature of how these images would appear on the traditional wall paintings when painted almost life size. The figures are named by the artist in… Read more »
The theme of this Madhubani painting is religious. Right in the centre, it showcases a large greyish face of Goddess Kali. Her eyes wide, are outlined with red and black, her tongue protruded and teeth showing, her jet black, long hair flowing unruly, are features usually associated with the Goddess, evoking her ferocity. Yet the… Read more »
This shadow puppet of Ravana is from Tholu Bommalaata, puppet tradition of Andhra Pradesh in India. Here, tholu means leather, bommalu means puppets and aata means dance. In Valmiki’s Ramayana, Ravana is portrayed as an opposition to Rama; the evil against the good. Ravana is a devout worshipper of Shiva. Apart from his physical characteristics, he is said to possess in-depth… Read more »
Created using oil paint and 22 ¾ gold leaf on Gesso panels, Jethro Buck’s painting ‘Wild Things’ borrows and meshes together a potpourri of images from across the global landscape – from pastoral England to Mughal India. This miniature style painting teases a range of dynamic figures – animal and human – who go about… Read more »
Samuel Bourne took this photograph of a bridge over the Wanga and the Sutlej river junction during his first expedition in the Himalayas in 1863. In the summer of 1863, on the 29th of July, Bourne set off from Shimla for his ten weeks journey into the Himalayas. This was his very first Himalayan expedition.… Read more »
This photograph of a river and a snow-clad mountain range in the background near Budrawar, a town four days from Chamba, was taken by Samuel Bourne. Bourne halted here for a day during his second major expedition to Kashmir and adjacent districts in 1864. Reflecting on his encounters with the residents of Budrawar, he wrote… Read more »
This is an engraving of Warren Hastings, the first Governor-General of Bengal, based on a painting by Sir Joshua Reynolds. Warren Hastings began his career in India as a clerk in the administration of the East India Company. The Mughal Empire was already in the process of disintegrating when he reached India. Instigated by Robert… Read more »
Mithila or Madhubani art originated as a ritual wall painting in Mithila region, primarily done on the occasion of marriage. Traditionally, it has been a woman’s preserve. With modern times the medium of art shifted to canvas, and on rare occasions to cloth. Depicted here is one of the most popular and iconic of these… Read more »
Mithila or Madhubani art originated as a ritual wall painting in Mithila region, primarily done on the occasion of marriage. Traditionally, it has been a woman’s preserve. With modern times the medium of art shifted to canvas, and on rare occasions to cloth. Depicted here is one of the most popular and iconic of these… Read more »
After Aurangzeb’s death in the year 1707, a war of succession emerged among his three surviving sons. Muazzam, the Governor of Kabul, Azam, the Governor of Gujarat, and Kam Baksh who was the Governor of Deccan, fought each other for the throne. Towards Ahmednagar, Azam had proclaimed himself emperor while on the other hand, the… Read more »
This silver square rupee coin was issued by Jahangir. An inscription in Persian on the obverse reads ‘”Noor ud din Jahangir Shah Akbar Shah.” The reverse shows the Persian month Shahrewar, Ilahi date, and zarb, with test marks appearing on both sides. The Ilahi month inscribed on this silver coin is ‘Shahrewar.’ Jahangir took a… Read more »
As the title of the etching suggests, pictured here is the Holy Family, traditionally and historically known as the ‘Holy Family of Françios I’ or ‘la Grande Sainte Famille Iesus Christ.’ The Virgin (Mother Mary) is seen seated right in front of the pillar, in the centre of the composition, and is holding up an… Read more »
In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, company officials and professional artists played an important role in collecting and disseminating knowledge about India – an activity central to British imperialism. The discovery and definition of vegetation and fauna helped the Company’s mission of exploiting lucrative raw materials and furthering scientific research. Sketching was a quick and… Read more »
This photograph of a bridge over the Chenab river near Kishtwar, located in the present-day Jammu and Kashmir state, was taken by Samuel Bourne. Sharing his impression of the bridge in the British Journal of Photography, Bourne informed, “I soon found myself again at the Chenab, but this time only to cross it by a… Read more »
This photograph, taken by Samuel Bourne, is of the ice cave at the foot of the Gangotri glacier. The image shows two men at the foot of the glacier where the river emerges out of the ice cave, also called ‘Gomukh’. Recalling his reaction upon reaching the glacier, Bourne writes, “we reached our destination at… Read more »
This photograph from the ‘Architecture in Dharwar and Mysore’ was taken by Dr. W.H.Pigou in 1856. This is the Hoysalesvara Temple in Halebidu, Karnataka. Seen are the two Nandi Mandapas attached to the main shrines. The Hoysaleswara Temple in Halebidu is also known as ‘Vishnuvardhana Poysalesvara’ after its patron and was built in 1121 AD.… Read more »
This photograph from the ‘Architecture in Dharwar and Mysore’ was taken by Dr. A.C.B.Neill in 1856. Pictured here is the ‘Andal Temple’ of the Belur temple complex in Karnataka. It is also known as ‘Shaumyanayaki’ or ‘Ranganayaki’ Temple as per the presiding deity. Th temple is located north-west of the Keshava Temple, and Dravidian style… Read more »